Purple city

One of the private firms running the troubled test and trace system has been slated for giving £17million to shareholders. Serco, which has a history of blunders with public service contracts, has already raked in £350m in fees for its part in running the botched scheme. Criticism includes its rotten record on tracking down people who have been in contact with those infected with coronavirus . The firm’s boss, Rupert Soames, has insisted it is having “remarkable success” and defended the windfall for shareholders. But Rachel Reeves, the Shadow Cabinet Office Minister, said: “It will outrage taxpayers that their money – meant to fund a contact tracing system which has never been up to scratch – is instead being paid to Serco shareholders via dividends. Are you signed up to our newsletter? You can sign up here to get the day's biggest stories straight to your inbox “It’s typical of this government’s appalling waste during this pandemic. They should have done with … [Read more...] about All of Serco’s contracts and blunders as shareholders get £17million payday

The Queen has said that having a COVID-19 vaccine "didn't hurt at all" as she encouraged those who are hesitant about getting jabbed to "think about other people rather than themselves". Her Majesty, who never talks about her own private health matters in public, endorsed the importance of the vaccination programme during a video call to those coordinating the operations across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Talking about her own experience of having the COVID jab in January, the Queen said: "Once you've had the vaccine you have a feeling of, you know, you're protected, which is I think very important. "As far as I could make out it was quite harmless. It was very quick, and I've had lots of letters from people who have been very surprised by how easy it was to get the vaccine. And the jab - it didn't hurt at all." Live COVID updates from the UK and around the world Advertisement The Queen has spoken to health … [Read more...] about COVID-19: ‘Think about other people’: Queen speaks out on vaccine hesitancy

A massacre in which Eritrean soldiers killed "many hundreds" of people in the Ethiopian city of Axum may amount to crimes against humanity, an Amnesty International report has said. The report describes what could be the deadliest massacre in the ongoing crisis in Ethiopia's Tigray region, with soldiers in late November gunning down civilians as they fled, and lining men up to shoot them in the back. It said there were "hundreds, if not thousands" of men lined to be beaten, while soldiers also stopped those grieving from burying their dead. "Eritrean soldiers deliberately shot civilians on the street and carried out systematic house-to-house searches, extrajudicially executing men and boys," the report said. Ethiopia conflict: What are they fighting about and why? "The massacre was carried out in retaliation for an earlier attack by a small number of local militiamen, joined by local residents armed with sticks and stones." Advertisement … [Read more...] about ‘Many hundreds’ killed by Eritrean soldiers in Ethiopian massacre, Amnesty International says

APPLE'S iPhone 11 is still one of the world's top smartphones and a new deal could make it all yours for a decent price. Certified refurbished versions of the iPhone 11 are being sold on eBay for just £459.95. The handsets have been used before but are said to have been professionally restored. This means they should be in a 'like new' condition. A company called Loop Mobile is behind the deal. Its seller notes state: “Sourced exclusively from Apple direct, these are fully tested and graded by our on-site Apple certified technicians. Refurbished iPhone 11 (64GB storage) on eBay for £459.95 – buy here "We run 80 functional tests on each product to ensure the best quality for your device, genuine devices 100% authentic.” If you select to buy the iPhone 11 handset with 64GB of storage then it costs £459.95. Buying the handset brand new would cost you £599. That means the eBay deal will save you £139.05. The handsets are being sold in black, … [Read more...] about iPhone 11 gets HUGE price cut to under £460 in rare Apple deal

A tiny London flat with a bed crammed into the kitchen is on sale for £115,000, the same as a three-bed semi-detached house in Leeds. Both properties have been listed on Zoopla in the last 30 days, highlighting the huge property price divide between the capital and almost anywhere else in the country. The studio flat, in Bromley, comes complete with kitchen appliances - but a photo shows the head of the bed sitting a foot from the oven door. The only other interior photo shows a bathroom. Have you transformed your house on a budget? Let us know your story at [email protected] Meanwhile, the house in the Yorkshire city's Swarcliffe area has three spacious bedrooms and a fitted kitchen. There's also a back garden with a section of decking with wooden railings. The Leeds property is a freehold, meaning a buyer would own the house and the land it stands on, for an unlimited period. While the south east London one is a leasehold for a set period - in this case for … [Read more...] about Tiny London flat with bed in kitchen on sale for £115k – same as Leeds three-bed semi